Speech & Language Therapy

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Catherine O-Sullivan is our resident Speech and Language Therapist and is the head of our Speech & Language Therapy department. Catherine qualified with a degree in psychology and speech pathology in 1998 and has been fortunate to enjoy a wide and varied career working as a speech and language therapist in both clinical and team lead roles since that time. Quite early on Catherine decided to specialise in working with children and young people of school age with speech, language and communication needs (SLCN) in a wide range of mainstream schools and specialist resourced based provisions. Catherine also completed a Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) in primary teaching in 2003. In recent years she has developed a particular interest and expertise in the assessment of children/young people with social communication difficulties and autistic spectrum conditions and is currently working as part of a multidisciplinary diagnostic assessment team within the NHS. 

Catherine states: "I have a particular passion for coaching and training education practitioners to meet the needs of pupils with SLCN in their settings and have considerable experience in devising and delivering a range of bespoke workshops and accredited training courses".

Further below you can view the costs for the delivery of training for education practitioners as well as assessment and therapy sessions.     

What is speech and language therapy? 

Speech and language therapy is an area of expertise practiced by a clinician known as a speech and language therapist (SLT or SALT). 

A speech and language therapist provides assessment, treatment and support for children and young people who have difficulties with communication or with eating, drinking and swallowing. 

SLT’s use their expertise and specialist skills to work directly with children/young people and their parents/carers to provide them with tailored support to meet their communication needs. They also work closely with teachers and other professionals in education, health and social care such as psychologists; paediatricians; occupational therapists. 

What are speech, language and communication difficulties?

A child may experience primary difficulties with speech, language and communication or they can be secondary to other developmental conditions such as autism 

Children may experience difficulties across one or many aspects of communication as follows: 

- Producing speech sounds accurately 

- Stammering 

- Voice problems such as hoarseness or loss of voice 

- Understanding language – making sense of what others say 

- Using language – choosing words and speaking in sentences 

- Using language and non-verbal communication to interact with others 

Did you know? 

Speech, language and communication needs are the most common type of special educational need in 4-11 year old children

How can speech and language therapy help? 

A speech and language therapist is able to identify which aspects of communication a child is having difficulty with based on assessments they carry out and through liaison with parents/carers and other professionals as needed. 

They can then provide advice and recommendations about what support a child may require in order to meet their communication needs. This may include direct support from a speech and language therapist on an individual or group basis and/or a programme of activities for parents/carers or others to carry out for example a teaching assistant in school. 

The type and extent of support will depend on the age of the child/young person and the type and severity of their specific communication needs. Speech and language therapists usually work closely with parents/carers and educational settings to support children through joint working, training those around the child and direct work with the child. 

Primary and Secondary focussed training session for education staff on identifying and supporting children/young people with speech, language and communication needs. 

Basic - 2 hours

£250

Intermediate - Half Day

£320

Advanced - Full Day

£400

Speech and Language Therapy 

Book an initial assessment and/or continual therapy. 

Initial Assessment - £65

Therapy Sessions - £45 per hour

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